Preparation

Melt the fat in a heavy sauce pan of 6 qt capacity. (I use a
4109 Wearever Saucepan. It hardly pays to make less than this
amount.) Lightly flour and brown the slices of shin meat on both
sides and remove them to a plate.

Add all the chopped vegetables and bacon rind, sauté
vigorously, and when they take some color, add the flour, and stir
slowly while the flour browns. This requires close attention. Use a
wooden spoon to do this, and keep the bottom of the pot free of any
burning.

When the flour has browned lightly, add the wine, aromatics and
stock. If you are using the beef shin add it back now, with any
juices it may have given on the plate.You will be adding cold
liquid to a hot roux, so take care that the steam initially
generated does not burn you. Stir vigorously. Hot roux requires
cold liquid so that it can dissolve and not lump. Bring the pot to
the boil and then cut back to the simmer. Add the dried mushrooms
now, if you want to use them.

Simmer this for about an hour, skimming any fat and scum that
rises to the top. When the shin meat is tender, remove it and enjoy
it as a meal at another time. Strain the liquid off into another
container. You will probably have about a gallon. Mash the solids
against the side of the strainer to get as much gravy out of them
as you can. Discard the solids. Or don't mash them, and put them
and the mushrooms with the shin meat, for a meal.

Return the brown sauce to the pot, and reduce it by half. If
the color is not rich, add a little tomato purée. For a
richer brown color, I use mushroom soy sauce. Season it. If it is
too thin, bind it with some cornstarch mixed with sherry, to bring
it to a suitable consistency, but avoid getting it too thick. If it
coats a spoon nicely, that is enough. Add the remainder of the
sherry to the sauce, and strain it again into clean containers that
have been rinsed with boiling water. Cover with Saran wrap, and
cool. Refrigerate. If any fat rises to the top of the sauce, leave
it until you are ready to use it, as it protects the sauce from
airborne spores.

Notes: This is the basic brown sauce, and extra
stock has been added, so that it is made as Espagnole and finishes
as Demi-Glace. Optional ingredients are just for flavor, and to get
an extra meal out of the work. After all, the chef deserves a nice
lunch.

Yield: 2 to 2-1/2 qts. Of demi-glace. If you
want to freeze it, omit the cornstarch and wine slurry, and bind it
after you thaw the frozen product, as it will hold up better that
way.